Progress and Promise

The moral imperatives expressed so eloquently by Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., who was assassinated 20 years ago today, inspired this nation to reform itself profoundly.

The night before he was killed in Memphis by James Earl Ray, King preached a prophetic message: “I’ve seen the promised land. I may not get there with you. But I want you to know tonight that we as a people will get to the promised land.” Twenty years later, despite much progress, America has many promises to keep.

In his final speech King advocated economic justice, a position that was found meddlesome by critics who defined him too narrowly as solely a civil-rights leader; they also abhored his opposition to the war in Vietnam. But King refused to limit his nonviolent strategies to racial issues.He was equally concerned about poor people of all races and poor children who did not have three square meals a day.

In Memphis King was addressing the plight of striking black garbage men; he urged a selective boycott against firms with unfair hiring practices. The workers finally won fair treatment 12 days after his murder.

The civil-rights revolution, of which King became the most conspicuous leader, changed the country in ways in which the younger of us can scarcely comprehend. The march on Washington on Aug. 28, 1963, where King gave his unforgettable “I Have a Dream” speech, was followed three months later by the assassination of President John F. Kennedy. Then, after a long battle in Congress, President Lyndon B. Johnson on July 2, 1964, signed the Civil Rights Act of 1964, which prohibited racial discrimination in public places and provided equal employment opportunity. The law broke employment barriers and allowed black Americans, other minorities and women to achieve spectacular individual successes.

The Voting Rights Act of 1965, approved after the bloody but ultimately triumphant march from Selma, prohibited literacy tests, poll taxes and other racial barriers to voting. The law enfranchised millions of black Americans, who have used their votes to change the political landscape.

King remained a master at applying pressure, as he put it, without bricks and bottles or Molotov cocktails. He stayed his nonviolent course when faced with club-wielding deputies, dogs, fire hoses and death threats during what were very violent years in America.

King’s remarkable victories, however, have not erased every vestige of racial prejudice and discrimination. In spite of broadened economic opportunities, the ranks of desperately poor Americans--black and white, child and adult--are still growing.

Martin Luther King Jr. challenged the nation’s conscience. He helped change this country not only for black Americans but for every American. He helped bring about great progress. But, 20 years after his tragic death, King’s promised land has not yet been reached.